


Safety Net

by MCUsic_to_my_ears



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Incredible Hulk - All Media Types
Genre: Alcohol is a reminder of abuse, Brian Banner's A+ Parenting, Bruce Banner & Tony Stark Friendship, Bruce Banner Feels, Bruce Banner Has Issues, Bruce Banner Needs a Hug, Bruce Banner-centric, Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, POV Bruce Banner, POV Tony Stark, Past Child Abuse, Protective Tony Stark, Suicidal Thoughts, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Is a Good Bro
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-21
Updated: 2017-05-21
Packaged: 2018-11-03 07:48:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 910
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10962858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MCUsic_to_my_ears/pseuds/MCUsic_to_my_ears
Summary: After a long night at a party hosted in the Avenger's Tower, Bruce finds himself avoiding the targeted smell of alcohol that surrounded him inside.Tony finds him and takes him back to safety.





	Safety Net

Cars blinked  by a thousand feet below, zipping out and out of traffic in the cool summer night. He could hear the soft murmur of the tires running over the hard asphalt and the light buzz of foot traffic.

Leaning further over the edge, Bruce strained his ears more, breathing in the ebb and flow of red and green lights and the squelch of tires and honk of horns. The sounds of the city washed over him, and he felt a calm surround him. But at the same token, the wind buffeting through the skyscrapers hit him with the will to be off the roof and somewhere far from the weight of heroes and gods.

The bottom of the tower seemed to be a good place to start.

The doctor found himself pulling himself up to sit on the edge of the roof, his legs swinging out over the street below. There, in that moment, he allowed himself to think back to what he was running from, why he was looking over hard concrete rather than the faces of his friends.

It always came back to alcohol for him. The smell of it rushing through him even though it had been nearly a half hour since he'd been inside the warm building with its even hotter breath and slurred atmosphere.

The sting of a hand on his shoulder still haunted him, even though while he strove to ignore the blood rushing through his ears, to remember that this was Clint and he wouldn't hurt you. It hurt more that he couldn't control his body's stiff reaction than the loosened memories that he kept carefully tucked away behind vibranium walls in his head. That's where the Other Guy lived. That's where they stayed.

The loud clanks of glasses had followed him up to the roof, the slosh of beer in plastic cups and the deafening whispers of swallowed whiskey.

The movement of traffic was the only blanket that could cover the trapped voices.

He preferred it to the smells that eroded at the vibranium in his head.

 

***

 

"Bruce?"

A quiet, hopeful plea.

"Bruce, are you up here?"

Asking for security.

"Because JARVIS said you were."

Asking for an answer.

"But you could've found a way to trick him."

Now or never.

"I'm here."

The glass shattered. 

 

***

 

"Thank fuck," the engineer cursed quietly, as if Bruce couldn't hear it. Maybe Tony forgot he could. Being overlooked was hard, so the doctor considered it a victory. But even that didn't overshadow his regret.

Footsteps crunched over gravel, coming towards him and he tried to keep from gagging at the smells that surged before his friend.

He's been at the party for Tony, because Tony hated pretending as much as he did and because he was supposed to be a supportive friend.

Bruce could feel Tony studying him, eyes memorizing the way his fingers bit into the concrete buffer and the hunch of his shoulders.

He couldn't force himself to relax.

The doctor knew what Tony was thinking. That he was upset, that he wanted out, even enough to join the passersby on the street below in the most direct way possible. He liked to think that gave him control over the situation, but this theory was disproven when Tony places a hand on his back. He flinches, of course he does, not noticing Tony's movement, only able to focus on the sharp stab of alcohol on his breath.

He isn't thinking of falling, not now, but Tony knows that sometimes when the genius is upset, he doesn't realize that those thoughts have already crossed his mind, raced ahead of him and that he's put himself into a dangerous situation without realizing it. Which is why Tony puts a steadying hand on the man who is leaning a bit too far over the edge.

"The party's over, everyone's gone."

"Okay." Bruce doesn't want to follow where his friend's going with this.

"You should come inside, it's freezing out here."

"Okay." He doesn't think so, but he might've just become numb to it. He thinks he does that a lot.

"Come on."

"Okay." Bruce forces himself to swing his stiff legs around and plant his unsure feet onto the roof.

They walk side by side to the stairs that lead back to the labyrinth that was the tower.

Tony hit the button for the elevator, sending them back to the common floor where the party had been.

He had told the truth, the floor was empty now, but waves of alcohol sent long overdue shivers down his spine.

Tony threw a bunch of empty cups into the trash while Bruce ghosted around the couch, settling down on a clean love seat.

The way Bruce isolated himself was indication enough to Tony that he'd just saved his friend's life, but who was he to guess?

"J, put on Mythbusters for us," Tony requested softly, popping a piece of gum into his mouth to help override the smell of beer. He triggered one of the automatic spray devices in his walls to release the scent of rosemary.

He knew about Bruce's past experience with alcohol and wanted to eliminate as many reminders of that as possible from his house.

Tony finally allowed himself to sit down when he heard Bruce softly laughing at the proposition of making a cheese canon. 

He figured they'd be okay. He could handle being a safety net for a long while longer. 


End file.
